Purpose: The DIANA study aimed to evaluate how often antimicrobial de-escalation (ADE) of empirical treatment is performed in the intensive care unit (ICU) and to estimate the effect of ADE on clinical cure on day 7 following treatment initiation. Methods: Adult ICU patients receiving empirical antimicrobial therapy for bacterial infection were studied in a prospective observational study from October 2016 until May 2018. ADE was defined as (1) discontinuation of an antimicrobial in case of empirical combination therapy or (2) replacement of an antimicrobial with the intention to narrow the antimicrobial spectrum, within the first 3 days of therapy. Inverse probability (IP) weighting was used to account for time-varying confounding when estimating the effect of ADE on clinical cure. Results: Overall, 1495 patients from 152 ICUs in 28 countries were studied. Combination therapy was prescribed in 50%, and carbapenems were prescribed in 26% of patients. Empirical therapy underwent ADE, no change and change other than ADE within the first 3 days in 16%, 63% and 22%, respectively. Unadjusted mortality at day 28 was 15.8% in the ADE cohort and 19.4% in patients with no change [p = 0.27; RR 0.83 (95% CI 0.60-1.14)]. The IP-weighted relative risk estimate for clinical cure comparing ADE with no-ADE patients (no change or change other than ADE) was 1.37 (95% CI 1.14-1.64). Conclusion: ADE was infrequently applied in critically ill-infected patients. The observational effect estimate on clinical cure suggested no deleterious impact of ADE compared to no-ADE. However, residual confounding is likely.

Purpose: To accommodate the unprecedented number of critically ill patients with pneumonia caused by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) expansion of the capacity of intensive care unit (ICU) to clinical areas not previously used for critical care was necessary. We describe the global burden of COVID-19 admissions and the clinical and organizational characteristics associated with outcomes in critically ill COVID-19 patients.Methods: Multicenter, international, point prevalence study, including adult patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and a diagnosis of COVID-19 admitted to ICU between February 15th and May 15th, 2020.Results: 4994 patients from 280 ICUs in 46 countries were included. Included ICUs increased their total capacity from 4931 to 7630 beds, deploying personnel from other areas. Overall, 1986 (39.8%) patients were admitted to surge capacity beds. Invasive ventilation at admission was present in 2325 (46.5%) patients and was required during ICU stay in 85.8% of patients. 60-day mortality was 33.9% (IQR across units: 20%-50%) and ICU mortality 32.7%. Older age, invasive mechanical ventilation, and acute kidney injury (AKI) were associated with increased mortality. These associations were also confirmed specifically in mechanically ventilated patients. Admission to surge capacity beds was not associated with mortality, even after controlling for other factors.

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Background The COVID-19 pandemic presented major challenges for critical care facilities worldwide. Infections which develop alongside or subsequent to viral pneumonitis are a challenge under sporadic and pandemic conditions; however, data have suggested that patterns of these differ between COVID-19 and other viral pneumonitides. This secondary analysis aimed to explore patterns of co-infection and intensive care unit-acquired infections (ICU-AI) and the relationship to use of corticosteroids in a large, international cohort of critically ill COVID-19 patients. Methods This is a multicenter, international, observational study, including adult patients with PCR-confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis admitted to ICUs at the peak of wave one of COVID-19 (February 15th to May 15th, 2020). Data collected included investigator-assessed co-infection at ICU admission, infection acquired in ICU, infection with multi-drug resistant organisms (MDRO) and antibiotic use. Frequencies were compared by Pearson’s Chi-squared and continuous variables by Mann–Whitney U test. Propensity score matching for variables associated with ICU-acquired infection was undertaken using R library MatchIT using the “full” matching method. Results Data were available from 4994 patients. Bacterial co-infection at admission was detected in 716 patients (14%), whilst 85% of patients received antibiotics at that stage. ICU-AI developed in 2715 (54%). The most common ICU-AI was bacterial pneumonia (44% of infections), whilst 9% of patients developed fungal pneumonia; 25% of infections involved MDRO. Patients developing infections in ICU had greater antimicrobial exposure than those without such infections. Incident density (ICU-AI per 1000 ICU days) was in considerable excess of reports from pre-pandemic surveillance. Corticosteroid use was heterogenous between ICUs. In univariate analysis, 58% of patients receiving corticosteroids and 43% of those not receiving steroids developed ICU-AI. Adjusting for potential confounders in the propensity-matched cohort, 71% of patients receiving corticosteroids developed ICU-AI vs 52% of those not receiving corticosteroids. Duration of corticosteroid therapy was also associated with development of ICU-AI and infection with an MDRO. Conclusions In patients with severe COVID-19 in the first wave, co-infection at admission to ICU was relatively rare but antibiotic use was in substantial excess to that indication. ICU-AI were common and were significantly associated with use of corticosteroids. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04836065 (retrospectively registered April 8th 2021). Graphical abstract

Introduction. Delirium during ICU stay is a widespread problem with complex aetiology. A premorbid psychiatric disorder has been associated with an increased incidence of delirium in the general hospital population, but data on the impact of ICU delirium and consequences for morbidity and long-term mortality remain scarce. Methods. In this single-centre retrospective analysis, 472 patients with an ICU stay >48 hours were included during a 2-year period. Postresuscitation and neurosurgical patients were not included. The primary aim of the study was to establish the incidence and duration of delirium during ICU stay in patients with (PS group) and without (NPS group) a premorbid psychiatric disorder. Data were analysed with applicable nonparametric tests. In a secondary analysis, patients were compared according to the presence or absence of delirium. Finally, a binary logistic regression model was constructed to correct for potential confounders. Results. Of all patients, 19.7% were included in the PS group. Baseline characteristics with respect to severity of illness and type of admission did not differ between groups, but PS patients were significantly younger and more often female in comparison with NPS patients. The overall incidence of delirium during ICU was 57% and did not significantly differ between groups (65% in PS group vs. 56% in the NPS group, p=0.13). In a univariate analysis, the presence of a psychiatric history was also associated with prolonged mechanical ventilation, length of stay ICU, and hospital stay, but not with long-term all-cause mortality. The presence of delirium at any time during ICU admission was significantly associated with prolonged mechanical ventilation and prolonged ICU and hospital stay, but not with mortality. In a Kaplan–Meier analysis, 5-year all-cause mortality was clearly separated between groups, but the difference remained statistically insignificant (X2=3.01, p=0.08). In a binary logistic regression model, age, male sex, APACHE III score, and premorbid psychiatric disorder (OR 1.8, CI 1.1–3.0; p=0.023) were all independently associated with the presence of delirium. Conclusions. In ICU patients with a length of stay >48 hours and a premorbid psychiatric disorder, the incidence of delirium was not significantly higher in comparison with patients without a premorbid psychiatric disorder.